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00:00International condemnation has been pouring in after a court in Hong Kong
00:03handed down jail sentences to 45 pro-democracy leaders.
00:08The defendants, which included some of the city's most prominent activists,
00:11were accused of conspiracy to commit subversion
00:14after holding an unofficial primary election in Hong Kong back in 2020,
00:19while their case marked the single largest trial under a national security law imposed by Beijing.
00:25Reacting to the sentencing, the EU has said it's another unprecedented blow
00:29against the city's fundamental freedoms.
00:31Take a listen to what Hong Kong's Secretary of Security Chris Tang has been saying.
00:41In a High Court ruling today regarding a case of conspiracy to subvert state power,
00:47the 45 convicted defendants received their sentences.
00:51The sentence for principal offender Benny Tai had a starting point of 15 years
00:57and was cut down to 10 years due to his guilty plea.
01:00Other than that, the defendants' sentences ranged from four years and two months
01:05to seven years and nine months.
01:11Well, let's get more on this with Elaine Pearson,
01:13who is Asia Director for Human Rights Watch.
01:16Elaine, thanks so much for joining us on the programme.
01:18Really appreciate your time.
01:19So as I mentioned there, this case marks the single largest trial under this
01:24national security law, which of course was imposed by Beijing.
01:28Can you tell us a bit more about what this law entails exactly?
01:33Yeah, I mean, this is really a dark day for Hong Kong.
01:36It's a dark day for democracy everywhere to see 45 people criminalised and convicted
01:42for peaceful political activity.
01:45And this tells you everything that is wrong with the national security law in Hong Kong.
01:49It takes all sorts of things that are unremarkable in a democracy,
01:53such as participating peacefully in political activity, running in an unauthorised primary.
01:59And that counts as subversion.
02:01Now in Hong Kong, under the national security law, all sorts of things are punished,
02:06whether it's participating in street protests, political slogans,
02:11even possessing certain newspapers or books about democracy.
02:17And so this is really chilling and it will have a chilling effect,
02:20you know, frankly, in Hong Kong and around the world.
02:24And, you know, we need governments really to continue to speak up and take action.
02:29Well, I think I know the answer to this next question, Elaine.
02:31Critics are saying that this national security law very much stifles
02:36any sort of political dissident in Hong Kong.
02:39Give us your reaction to that and your take to that.
02:43Well, it does.
02:44I mean, it absolutely does.
02:45I mean, these prosecutions, you know, should be quashed.
02:49People should be released.
02:50I mean, if you look at who's being prosecuted, you know, it's a law professor,
02:54it's former journalists, it's legislators, it's former student leaders,
02:58people who are actively trying to defend democracy in Hong Kong under the one country, two systems.
03:06And, you know, instead, they're paying a very heavy price.
03:08They're going to jail for, you know, many years.
03:12And this does send a chilling effect to others.
03:15So, you know, the national security law, many governments
03:18have raised concerns about how it violates international law.
03:21And so I think now we're looking to those governments to see,
03:24well, what's going to be the follow up action?
03:26People are going to jail as a result of this law that violates human rights.
03:30We have, you know, laws on targeted sanctions
03:34that should be being applied, frankly, by countries that are concerned about democracy.
03:39And so we'd like to see those sorts of targeted sanctions
03:41applied to the Hong Kong officials that are violating human rights
03:45by sending people to prison for, you know, simply exercising their basic rights.
03:49Well, let's talk about the state of the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong.
03:53We, of course, saw those massive protests in 2019.
03:57Tell us about whether this movement still has the fire that it had in 2019.
04:01We're seeing Beijing have more and more influence on Hong Kong.
04:05Where is the pro-democracy movement at the moment?
04:08Well, I mean, many of the leaders are in jail now,
04:12or they've had to flee to other countries.
04:14So they're continuing their activism elsewhere in the diaspora.
04:18You know, the big street protests that we saw five years ago,
04:21you know, are obviously not happening now because of the passage of the national security law.
04:26But that has not extinguished the desire of Hong Kongers for democracy and freedom.
04:31And Gwyneth Ho, who was one of the accused who was convicted today,
04:36released a very lengthy statement on social media, which I would encourage people to read.
04:41And she talks about how Hong Kong people, you know, really grew strength
04:46from others around the world who are also battling and fighting on the front lines
04:50for democracy, peaceful activists like Navalny in Russia or the Belarusian activists,
04:56and that they need to continue this fight for democracy peacefully around the world
05:02in order to ensure that, you know, people in Hong Kong can really be free
05:07and enjoy the freedoms that were promised to them
05:10and that have been repeatedly violated by the Chinese government.
05:14And we've seen a lot of condemnation with chorus of international condemnation
05:18from countries around the world today to this news that
05:22the 45 pro-democracy activists were sentenced.
05:26Tell us about what the international community can be doing.
05:28You alluded to the sanctions that were put forward, but I think never really enforced.
05:35Tell us what the international community could be doing more
05:37in terms of making sure democracy stays in Hong Kong.
05:41Well, obviously, it's a good thing that, you know,
05:43states around the world have been condemning these actions.
05:47And, you know, some states have been calling for the repeal of the national security law
05:51or that it should be amended in line with international standards.
05:54That absolutely needs to happen.
05:56I think what we'd like to see is targeted sanctions
06:00on those Hong Kong officials that are violating human rights.
06:03We have many countries that have laws that allow
06:05for targeted sanctions on human rights grounds.
06:08So these really need to be applied.
06:10We'd also like to see human rights front and centre of bilateral discussions
06:14with the Chinese government, with the Hong Kong authorities at every opportunity.
06:19And, you know, frankly, it's not only up to governments.
06:21We'd also like to see businesses that have interests in Hong Kong,
06:26this must send a chill down the spine of any international company
06:29to see the way in which the reach of this law
06:33is having very harsh consequences on individuals.
06:36And so I think at every opportunity, people need to be raising these concerns.
06:40It was also chilling to see that when Biden and Xi recently met just a few days ago,
06:46that raising democracy and human rights was presented as a red line
06:50for the Chinese government, that they don't want to see these issues raised.
06:53They're trying to silence and censor any criticism of human rights
06:58when actually what should be outlawed, what should be the red line
07:02is the violation of human rights wherever we see that occurring.
07:05And, you know, it's up to states to protect human rights.
07:08They've agreed to do that under international law
07:11and they need to take steps to remedy that.
07:13And if they don't, it's absolutely appropriate
07:16for other states to raise those concerns and take action.
07:19Elaine, thank you so much for coming on the programme
07:21and giving us your perspective.
07:23I really appreciate getting your thoughts.
07:24That's Elaine Pearson, who is Asian Director for Human Rights Watch.
07:28Thank you so much for joining us.